WHO: Foreclosure victims, unemployed New Yorkers, students with debt, Occupy Wall Street protesters, members of Strong Economy for All, UnitedNY, New York Communities for Change, ALIGN, The Yes Men

WHAT: Thousands will march to the headquarters of five major banks to deliver over 6,000 letters to the 1% submitted to occupytheboardroom.org, concluding with a general assembly at which a foreclosure victim from Southeast Queens will read a letter through the people’s mic inviting Jamie Dimon to tour her neighborhood.

VISUALS: Thousands of people trying to throw paper airplane letters up to the top floor of the BofA building, thousands of people delivering a singing telegram to Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit led by a choir and marching band, poster oard blowups of letters from the 99%, giant mailbag full of letters from march participants.

ACTION DESCRIPTION:

(1) Throughout the march a flyering team will be handing out copies of the letters that have links to the website at the bottom. Both marches will be accompanied by (a) a team of bicycling pirates, (b) a choir, (c) a marching band, (d) a set of "postmasters" with stenciled OTBR logos to guide the march and lead group activities. At the top of the march, postmasters will distribute "mailing instruction" 8.5x11 sheets with (a) the march route, (b) description of activities, (c) song lyrics, (d) a space for marchers to write their own letter.

(2) Group 1 and 2 march to first banks, at which we will have a mass paper airplane throwing event. (Postmasters to instruct crowd in paper airplane folding and throwing via people's mic.) After airplanes are thrown, postmasters will help crowd collect all planes and put them in a big mailbag, which will be left in the lobby of the bank.

(3) Groups 1 and 2 march to second bank at which the choir leads everyone in a unison singing of one of the letters. The text for that letter will be printed on the "mailing instructions" handout and on giant (6' x 8') posterboard blow-ups so that everyone can sing along. At the end of the song, we attempt to leave the giant letters in the lobby of the banks.

(4) Groups 1 and 2 converge on Chase HQ at which we sit down and convene a special reading and writing GA. Austin will (tentatively) MC. The main event will be three letter-writers reading their letters to Jamie Dimon over the people's mic. After the letters are read, there will be a brief writing exercise in which the crowd is given 5 minutes to write a letter to the 1% on a detachable portion of their "mailing instructions" sheet. After 5 minutes, we will leave all our letters in or outside of Chase's lobby and leave.

TIMELINE:

Group 1: Meet 1pm at Bryant Park, march to Citigroup, Wells Fargo, end at ChaseGroup 2: Meet 1pm at Bryant Park, march to Bank of America, Morgan Stanley, ChaseGroups 1 & 2: 3pm converge on Chase for 3:30pm letter reading

If you people really want to know what a revolution looks like, turn on the news. Look at how a real revolution takes place. If you think that sleeping in a park will solve anything, you are wrong. Show me anywhere in history where there was a peaceful revolution. It never happened and never will. If you really want the change that you thought you voted for in the last election, unfortunately, you must be willing to bleed and possibly give your life for it. We ask our military to do this every day.

I think that what you people really want, is to go to college "for free", get your healthcare "for free", go to a high paying job that you got from your free education and do nothing but get paid "for free".

Please no paper planes of any sort. It has taken me years to get over the tragedy of 9/11. My husband worked in the Pentagon.We waited all day for him to walk home. If you go that route,you will definetly lose alot of people that support you.

I am the 99%, and I support OWS wholeheartedly. But I hope you'll reconsider throwing paper airplanes at the banks. Clearly, no physical damage will be done, but the symbolism of "airplanes hitting buildings" will not be lost on those who wish to discredit you.

Symbolism is a powerful thing. It's like burning an individual in effigy. No one gets hurt. You don't actually kill the individual, but symbolically, you eradicate him from the human race, then celebrate his grisly death.

Or it's like burning a cross. Purely symbolic.

Do you really want to be the ones symbolically hitting NYC skyscrapers with airplanes?

Bailouts. War. Unemployment. Our government is bought, and we’re angry. Now, we’re turning our anger into positive action. By signing this petition, you are joining our campaign to get money out of politics. Our politicians won’t do this. But we will. We will become an unrelenting, massive organized wave advocating a Constitutional amendment to get money out of politics.

Occupy Wall Street needs to shut its stupid mouth.
How dare they count every person in the ninety-nine percent they talk about as in with them.
They do not have a right to speak for me.
I like the rich.
Many of them started with nothing or almost nothing.
Steve Jobs and countless others became VERY rich after being very poor.
They did not complain.
They had ideas and went with them.
The top one percent creates jobs.
Our companies, stores, firms and on and on that employ millions were not started by poor people.
They were started by the wealthy.
Now, OWS states that the rich are our enemy.
Great, go against those who create so much.
Occupy Wall Street has got to be the most stupid bunch of idiots to ever band together.
They have no real clue as to what they are doing.
In Los Angeles, they accomplished nothing and left a mess that cost the city a lot of money.
In Seattle, OWS blocked docks and tried to prevent people from going to work.
Yet, they claim they want people to go to work.
The entire Occupy movement is a joke.
They talk for the entire ninety-nine percent, but of those ninety-nine percent of the people, about ninety percent are working.
I live in Beverly Hills and I'm doing fine.
I don't need Occupy Wall Street to tell me what to do.

“”YOU NEED A GAME PLAIN””
.....THE GAME PLAIN........
Inventions Designs & Concepts.LLC
Please Organize your FORCES. Chain of command need to help implement these programs in your OCCUPIED CITIES.
Then you too can control the WELTH in you communities. Any Question Just contact me. I’m willing to add more directions to help you make this once in a life time SHOT come true. Helpful Directions Below.
How to FIX the US Economy 101 http://www.fatttrixx.com/revenue.html
" 5 Tank System.AVI” Free Energy” "Hydrogen Car Fenders 2012"
See these 2 program that ID&C designed
OCCUPY SOCIETY!! WIN WIN !!
!! We as Americans need to Reverse the way Big Companies get their revenue
, (Answer)DIG INTO THEIR REVENUE
1) Drinking Water Sales revenues 100% to the People
2) Snack FOODS revenue 20% to the People
3) Car Fuel 70%
4) Power Companies revenues 80%
5) Video gaming Playing revenue 70%
We at ID&C have Programs to enter into all of her above major industries Join a SOLUTION
"OCCUPY SOCIETY"! WIN WIN!
"How to FIX the US Economy 101" http://www.fatttrixx.com/revenue.html
1) Found Raising/Donations collection ($$$$)
2) Take that money to a Young group of manager who just finish one of those trade schools that the President Paid for .
3) Hand over the “Hydrogen Car Fender” design to them and direct them to a Plastic manufacture.
4) The plastic manufacture will accept the designs for the “Hydrogen Car Fender” and make the east mold to start Pressing them out.
5) Tool Shops will be given the Designs for the style of Hydrogen Stainless Steel configuration for the plastic manufactures to place in side the mold to incase inside the Fender.
6) Make and models will very so the Team of managers will produce and organize the install time for make and models.
The next stop. You should be showing the people that relief they been asking for .http://www.fatttrixx.com/revenue.html.
“Anonymous” “ The Cure 4 America”
TIMING IS EVERYTHING> NO SECOND CHANCES
get this program and get at it ASAP...We as the 90% can control $7Billion ever 30Days and Fix what is wrong Step by Step.

1)Start asking the wealthy for money .
Raise the money to produce the Hydrogen CAR FENDERS .
2) Allow US Citizens to pre register their car on line to help raise capital before you go into
productions.
3) Use the Money raised on line to Pay manufactures and tool shop (Job Creator) for
producing and delivery of the Hydrogen car fenders.
4) Set up shops around the USA in every State to get more people involved in saving portion
of $6,000 a year. Shops will Installs these device when they are delivered.

5)When US Citizens Pre Order on line they can then ask for make and model of car , or they
can just Commission A Hydrogen car fender before they know what type a car it will be
installed on.
6) Portions of the founding in the Pre section of these program will be sent to develop the
final 3D rendering of "Hydrogen hammer System" and '5 Tank System"
With these two Program you can offer the people a TRUE SOLUTION with $6,000 a month in their pockets and YOUR
GROUP gets to control $7Billion a month , back in to the US ECONOMY.

I'm getting angry just thinking about the fact that we can so easily shame somebody like Anthony Weiner out of office for photographing his underwear and sending it to a consenting adult--something that had no direct bearing on his official capacity; yet THE WHOLE OF OCCUPY WALL STREET HAS NOT SHAMED A SINGLE POLTICIAN TIED TO WALL STREET CORRUPTION FROM OFFICE. Start with Geithner.

I'm getting angry just thinking about the fact that we can so easily shame somebody like Anthony Weiner out of office for photographing his underwear and sending it to a consenting adult--something that had no direct bearing on his official capacity; yet THE WHOLE OF OCCUPY WALL STREET HAS NOT SHAMED A SINGLE POLTICIAN TIED TO WALL STREET CORRUPTION FROM OFFICE. Start with Geithner.

Where is the common sense to take wealth away from those who earned it? Is it not the same type of crime that the OWS protesters are complaining about? What happens to Liberty to pursue wealth if wealth is capped or subtracted? Where and what will become of our wealth builders? If after time there is no more wealth then who will care for the poor? What kind of world is this protest proposing? It makes no sense except for all the grand standing.

"Repeal the Patriot Act. Dismantle the corporate state. Dismantle the Pentagon, its budget, etc...and, eliminate the Department of "Defense". Petition the Supreme Court to re-open the "corporation is a person" concept, or file a massive citizen suit against the government for allowing this fallacy to continue. Universal "free" higher education for all; with a two year dedication on graduation for peace corp and or service within our own country to serve the needy. This is just a start."

Dismantle the corporate state? What does that even mean? Is that code for "smash capitalism"?

Dismantle the pentagon? What??? Are you now using code for "smash democracy"?!

Eliminate the DOD? Are you insane?!

Universal free higher education? Only if you want a lynch mob of people who've done their due diligence.

Judas Priest. This even your surveys are screwed. I am done with the movement. And if this "choice" I just quoted becomes a reality... I will join the 53% against you... even though I hate 90% of their bullshit more than yours.

To those that are standing for the 99% just want to say "Thank You". Even if you don't succeed at making a big change to a system that is geared against it, I am grateful for your efforts. For greed to continue unnoticed, is like cancer going unchecked. To those that profess Godliness and continue to capitalize on the weakness of others, there are eyes watching you. If capitalism only breeds selective fortune and mass despair, than press on my OWSers.

I think the solution to all this would be a minimum and maximum annual income with a cap on the amount of money people can own. When companies like mcdonalds, walmart and oil companies make billions in profits that money just sits stagnant in rich peoples bank accounts and that causes the pool of money for the 99% to get smaller and when it gets to small the government prints more money which devalues the dollar which causes the price of things to go up, what doesn’t go up is peoples salaries, that’s the main problem instead of government subsidizing rich oil companies subsidize the people so they can buy the things they need and subsidize the companies themselves in an entire different way. What 99%ers should do is throw out the government and start over new. look at this link this is a good example of what should be done
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGTzbj3fRSw

We must bring the Prime Law into the constitution. This amendment will transform our destructive society into an evolutionary direction of prosperity and peace for all of man kind. Look to the teachings of Mark Hamilton and the Twelve Visions Party. This is what the people of the World have been looking for...

We must bring the Prime Law into the constitution. This amendment will transform our destructive society into an evolutionary direction of prosperity and peace for all of man kind. Look to the teachings of Mark Hamilton and the Twelve Visions Party. This is what the people of the World have been looking for...

We must bring the Prime Law into the constitution. This amendment will transform our destructive society into an evolutionary direction of prosperity and peace for all of man kind. Look to the teachings of Mark Hamilton and the Twelve Visions Party. This is what the people of the World have been looking for...

God damn it. You die hard winner take all bloodthirsty capitalists and filthy rich pigs absolutely refuse to understand the following: First, that record high charges in health care, energy, and finance also mean record high profits and record high dividends. 1/2 of which are paid to the richest one percent. This causes more hardship and more concentration of wealth. At the same time, more financial aid in the form of welfare, Medicare, and Medicaid becomes necessary. Especially with those record high charges and profits. As even more wealth is concentrated, the lower majority go into debt and lose their relative buying power. This results in less demand, layoffs, and higher unemployment. This results in even more legitimate need for financial aid, a slower economy, less revenue, and higher national debt. It's a downward cycle tied directly to the relentless concentration of wealth.

I'm not making excuses for those who sit on the couch, make no attempt to find work, and sponge off the government. I'm not calling for a welfare state. But God damn it. You die hard conservatives and filthy rich pigs need to stop being such cowards, open your god damn eyes, and finally admit that there is a downside as more and more wealth becomes concentrated.

The richest one percent now own well over 40 percent of all United States wealth. The lower 90 percent now own less than 10 percent of all United States wealth.
This is true even after you account for all taxes, charity, and financial aid.
This equation becomes more obscene when you account for nearly two trillion in consumer debt which is owed primarily by the lower 90 percent. Mark my words: this equation will get worse.

THERE IS A DOWNSIDE AS YOU GET RICHER AND RICHER!

A word for my critics:
I'm no expert but I'm no fool. I predicted this socio-economic crisis in writing 6 years ago. I'm aware of all the conservative and liberal talking points. Of course, I hate politicians. But I don't hate liberals or conservatives. I agree with both on some issues. For example: I agree that we need an adequate safety net for those in need. Not for those who sit on the couch and watch TV.I agree with tax cuts for small business. But not for Wall Street and not for those making $500,000 and up. A heavy concentration of wealth is what got us here. A gradual and partial redistribution of wealth is vital.

I don't want socialism, communism, or marxism. I want modest capitalism. A reasonable scale of income opportunity for all those willing and able to work. An adequate safety net for those in need.

A word for the rich:
I have received quite a bit of negative feedback from you one percent club pigs. I must be doing something right. After all, you took time away from your money bath just for me. You might want to check your ass crack for soggy bills. In the meantime, let me just say this for the record:

You can't intimidate me. You can't embarrass me. You can't make me feel uneducated, unintelligent, or otherwise insignificant. You can't confuse me. You can't divert my attention. You can't exhaust me and you sure as hell can't break my will. I know I'm getting to you because you're here with another lame psychological trick. You're here in an attempt to shut me up. It won't work. I've had it with all of you.

I won't break any laws. I would never discredit the cause with a criminal act. But I'm telling you right now that I'm virtually impossible to stop. It's a big world and I have a lot to say. If you want to break my will, you're going to have to break my neck first.

If you pull a stunt like that, a lot of people will know what happened to me and why.

The political and economical leadership of the US has chosed to cartel profits and transformed the US economy to serve the colluding and unlawful oligarchy. The US banks are borrowing money at near zero interest from the US government, then lending it to the US government at even mere fractions higher interest than they are paying. The net interest margin made by the US banks by lending the money back to the US government in the first 6 months of 2011 is $211 billion.The US banks also been collecting interest on money they are not lending—the excess reserves they have at the US Federal Reserve. The behavior and de facto immunity of the largest US banks is out of control. The financial crisis was created by the biggest US banks to consolidate power. The top 6 US banks had assets of less than one fifth of US GDP in 1995. Now they have two third of US GDP. The big banks became stronger as a result of the bailout. They're turning that increased economic clout into more political power. The US citizens are on the road to permanent serfdom under a police state from oligarchs’ rapacious looting and their purchase of a politically-protected luxurious lifestyle.
We essentially have had modern-day bank robbers at Wall Street— except that they wore gray suits and not masks — and there’s been no accountability for it. Every day we see energy speculators, war profiteers, managed health-care providers, media propagandists, and financiers of Wall Street given some unfair advantage over the average consumers and taxpayers, and the cumulative effect of the American people watching selfishness prevail over the public interest has been an undermining of the public’s trust in the present US government. There’s no question the Wall Street system is rigged against the little guy. The Wall Street interests have a lot more information. They jerry-rig the system so that they always win. Oligarchy is political power based on economic power. And it’s the rise of the Wall Street in economic terms, that it’d turn into political power. And Wall Street then feed that back into more deregulation, more opportunities to go out and take reckless risks and– and capture huge amounts of money. The American democracy was not given to us on a platter. It is not ours for all time, irrespective of our efforts. Either people organize and they find political leadership to take this on, or we are going to be in big trouble. That’s absolutely the heart of the problem. I would also say and tell you, and emphasize, these Wall Street people will not come out and debate with us. The heads of Wall Street or their representatives, they will not come out. They’re afraid. They don’t have the substance. They don’t have the arguments. We have the evidence. They have the lobbyists. And that’s all they have. Wall Street Corporations don’t make anything. They don’t produce anything. They gamble and bet and speculate. And when they lose vast sums they raid the U.S. Treasury so they can go back and do it again. Never mind that $50 trillion in global wealth was erased between September 2007 and March 2009, including $7 trillion in the U.S. stock market and $6 trillion in the housing market. Never mind that the total amount of retirement and household wealth trashed was $8 trillion or that we saw $2 trillion in 401(k)s and individual retirement accounts evaporate. Never mind the $2 trillion in traditional defined-benefit plans and the $3 trillion in nonpension assets that went up in smoke. Never mind the job losses, the foreclosures and the 35% jump in personal and small-business bankruptcies. There are bundles of new money, taken again from us, to make deals and hand out outrageous bonuses. And when these trillions run out they will come back for more until our currency becomes junk. The value of the US$ declined very significantly during the last 70 years. The valus of the US$ in 1940 was worth 2,000% more than the value of the US$ now.

The Gang of Twelve will be meeting in November to take "entitlelments" away from the middle class and the poor. These programs include, medicaid, food stamps, and housing assistance - all so that the upper 1% and the big corps and financial institutions won't have to pay so much as a penny extra in taxes, never mind go back to the tax rates in effect before the W. Congress lowered them.

These coming actions on the part of the Gang of 12 will put thousands of low income children (never mind low income disabled and seniors) out onto the streets with no food and no medical care. Are we going to allow our brothers and sisters to starve on the streets because Goldman Sachs et al demand that Congress do this? NO! We are the 99%!

Anyone out there on the ground and in the trenches, KUDOS.
Watch this video of Peter Schiff talking with occupiers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGL-Ex1CD1c
I have to say I was a little disappointed. There is a LOT of economic ignorance out there. You'd think the Socialists from Europe came to America to infiltrate our way of life. Higher taxes is NOT the answer to what ails us. Work is what we need. If you're unemployed I'm sorry but taxing the capitalist system so you can be provided for is NOT what America is about. GO HOME. We don't want you representing American interest.

Let us stamp out CORPORATE GREED and unfair stock trading. Urge Congress to pass THE SHAREHOLDER EQUALITY ACT. The law shall read as follows: If Joe Average buys 1 share of Company X stock and Warren Buffett buys 1 share of Company X stock, then EVERY term and condition of those 2 shares SHALL be IDENTICAL. No exceptions! That plain, that simple!!! Show your support and get your buttons today at http://www.cafepress.com/thedirtycloset.546802414

I'm concerned that there not reporting the facts about how the protestors were by definition more like a mob then protestors in Oakland, so more people wont make the same dumb mistake and get hurt and you just want to promote that it was unprovoked which is not entirely true, both sides made major mistakes in judgment. The sooner people realize this the better chance it can be avoided next time. The approach of hiding this info will only bring more anger and unnecessary violence. shame on you.

We need a fresh start. We need a third party, a party that represents WeThE People and can't be hijacked and bought by wealthy constiuents and corporations. The two party system is broke and no longer works for We The Poeple.

Shut the banks down and audit all of them. Bring back the Glass-Stegall Act.

Put people back to work with a decent living wage. Don't discriminate against them because they have been out of work for 6 months or more. Set up programs where the unemployed can learn a new trade without going into debt.Put the building of the infrastruture back in the hands of the government, so we can re-build our country's roads,parks and cities.

Stop the penalization of unemployed with CBI'S. Its bad enough they're out of work.
Forgiveness on student loans and foreclosed mortgages.Keep families in their homes by refinancing their mortgages with a fixed rate below 4%. Make it affordable. We can't have anymore people homeless and or students/grads in debt with triple digit college loans.

Universal healthcare and wellness programs for all US citizens.

No more generational welfare. If you are able-bodied,then you need to be responsible and work. No more handouts. It has broken the backs of the middle/working class people with TAXATION!

Its not that we demand that from the 1%. We just want the shackles of serfdom removed from the middle/working class so that we can live a free and happy life.

Money talks. Protest day and night for the next hundred years and it won't change a thing until the money dries up or disappears. Politicians (Democrats AND Republicans) are vampires. By making collective decisions about who or what we finance (and only in our own interest, of course) can we have a meaningful impact on Washington.

here is something to send to the 1%.........how would you feel if we occupied your homes and took away everything you worked for and earned then left you out in the streets to fend for yourselves with nothing but the clothes on your back.......how would you feel if you had to walk a mile in our shoes?

I'm all in favor of letting CEOs know we're upset about their receiving bailout funds, but that dissatisfaction must be balanced with a pursuit of legislation to tamp down the rampant corporatism in Washington. We need to "Occupy The White House" and "Occupy Congress".

If you want true unbiased change, the youth MUST VOTE, moreso you should vote for 'independants'. If they will fight for the community/populace they serve and also force them to work with others (ie. other voted independance).

To get those that financially abuse you to stop this abuse has to be the goal of this revolution. The ONLY way to get the abusers to stop their abuse is to shut them down until they pass laws and policies that STOP this abuse! The abusers will continue their business as usual until WE stop them! The President is powerless and Congress won't stop them because the RepubliCONS won't let the Congress pass laws to prevent this abuse. Go to my web page at www.mybetteramericaplan.com and on my Current Events section you will see ideas that will LEGALLY shut down Wall Street, Congress, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and the Republican Convention in Tampa this summer! Let's get this revolution moving! Let's get some RESULTS!

Please everyone, go to Gizmo's website and, after you have donated to him (first paragraph in Current Events section), and continue reading, you will see just what is wrong with some of the OWS crowd and their hangers-on. You will not be surprised to learn that Gizmo should see a shrink, soon.

How about we take the power back from the one percent. Start small, maybe get a group of home owners to self insure them selfs. Everybody pays a into a not for profit company that is used only for claims. As the money accumulates maybe start doing the same for car insurance, health insurance and so on. It seems to me that once started it could save money for everyone and bring the cost of living down, while showing the one percent that ninty nine percent has had enough. What a message that would send.

I don't see how Bryant Park is going to work as a meeting place. Did anybody actually scope this out? They've got the whole winter village and ice rink set up in there and then half the park is closed with construction and maintenance equipment.

A chant I haven't heard yet which would certainly resonate with the objectives of Occupiers is
CRIMINALS
OUT OF
GOVERNMENT
I believe most Americans can identify with that demand should they hear it on a newsclip and it would certainly cause some uneasiness in many officials and their representatives.
Try it a few times out loud and remember it when the time is right.
Yarg

Okay this action is notable! BUT we need specific action to AMEND the Supreme Court's ruling called "CITIZENS UNITED." This bit of work is the actual heart of the new, organized, 1% assault on the political system in the country. This one bit of legislation took our democracy and political system and handed them over lock-stock-and barrel to the ruling wealthy elite. Want a democracy?? AMEND "CITIZENS UNITED." Make it an ELECTION ISSUE. Write your congress man today so they will. FOCUS AND ACT!

OCCUPY THE NEWS!
Use YouTube and other video sites to make professional quality pieces. Make fun of dishonest rhetoric and meaningless political jargon and to expose those who have an arrogant lack of empathy with the 99%.

Typically you would want smaller government, less taxes and less immigration so that American people can get jobs first, that's what your founding fathers wanted. However, it seems you want more government intervention in the form of greater taxation on the middle class forcing them to cut back on expansion, which will decrease job creation and force medium to large enterprises to look for better locations for their businesses in for example China and India.

However, I get where you are coming from, I really do. The fact that the banks were bailed out with tax monies when they should have defaulted, sending the entire world into free fall economic hyperinflation overnight, was just wrong! It was also wrong for the federal government to force banks to lend to minorities that they knew could never pay them back at sub-prime loans and mortgage rates. And that is what caused the financial problems in the first place, lending to people who could not pay back what they borrowed. It was governmental interference in the supposed "free market" economy of America that led to the recession.

And you want more of that? Count me out! The entire world economy is laden with debt, with China sitting on trillions of dollars worth of useless American bonds. China knows America will eventually default, they ain't going to continue to buy those bonds forever. If you think times are bad now, just wait!

The National Debt is only a problem for those the 1%. This is a fact, the debt is no more and no less than the total amount of US dollars and or US treasuries in existence. To reduce debt is to remove money from society. To increase debt is to increase the money in society. The 1% have a whole lot of the money in society so they do not want there to be much more as it would diminish their position.

To get the country back on track and back working for the 99%, we need a lot of government spending. If this spending leads to inflation, and an economic boom, then we may have to increase taxes to prevent runaway inflation. This is the second reason the 1% doesn't like government spending because they think it will inevitably lead to higher taxes.

The fund set up for victims of BP Plc’s oil spill has paid $5.5 billion to more than 213,000 claimants in every U.S. state and 38 nations, according to Kenneth Feinberg, who runs the compensation program.
The Gulf Coast Claims Facility receives about 2,270 submissions a week, Feinberg said today in testimony to the House Natural Resources Committee. The fund is “achieving its objective” and the number of new applicants is “proof positive that we are doing something right,” Feinberg said. The totals are current as of Oct. 21.

Representative Doc Hastings, a Washington Republican and chairman of the panel, said there has been a “large hole” in oversight and accountability of the claims facility, which started writing checks in 2010. State officials and residents along the Gulf of Mexico have called the fund inefficient and the payments too low.
BP set aside $20 billion for the fund last year and named Feinberg as manager after negotiations with the Obama administration over damages to homes and businesses from the April 2010 spill, which spewed crude into the Gulf for 87 days.

That was the report by Bloomberg here is what Bloomberg forgot to report. The hearing revealed that $20 billion is a floor not a ceiling but that was contradicted by on August 2013 if Feinberg who receives his own monthly compensation of $1,250,000 monthly doesn't disperse the $20 billion the remaining balance will be returned to BP. In addition to the oil BP purposely dumped toxic chemicals called dispersants to disperse the oil making tiny drops from globs so the oil can't be seen. Shrimpers are catching 40% less than normal now but that could be much less 5 or 10 years from now. The oil can't be seen and neither can the missing shrimp be seen.

That huge decrease in shrimp doesn't account for the reduction of shrimp feed for all the sea creatures that eat shrimp for their diet. The BP fund won't compensate starving sea inhabitants. Every BP statement proved untrue. The SCREWED AGAIN remedy would be to arrest all the BP executives who purposely tried to save money when they used 6 centralizers instead of 23 and confiscate the entire company the same as the DEA would confiscate all the cocaine, the cars, homes and assets they would sell from cocaine dealers. The USA would then sell all the BP stock to remedy all the victims of the 4,900,000 barrel spill.

Ouchy! Nope, not minorities themselves but instead, government deciding what risks lenders and banks should take with regards to minorities and threatening the banks and lenders with lawsuits if they don't comply. This has been going on since way back, when Clinton was el presidente, and has immensely contributed to the current crisis. To think it didn't would be to ignore a massive component of the problem and to do that would be a huge disfavour to your protest's well being. Connect all the dots, not just a few.

Trillions in losses due to banks being forced to lend to sub prime borrowers… give me a break. The entire world’s financial system is on the verge of collapse because we went from 67.8% home ownership in 2001 to a peek of 68.9 in 2005. That was part of a much bigger problem. Its CDOs, derivatives, and credit default swaps that have created the systemic risk in the banking industry. There are Hundreds of TRILLIONS of $$$ in derivatives created to insure against any possible loss imaginable. The problem is that you don't have to have an insurable interest to buy this protection. You could be a lender who has intimate knowledge of the loan covenants of a major company, take out protection against this company's failure, short the company stock so the value of the securities it holds against its obligations falls below a certain level forcing the lenders to call their loans and if no one come to the rescue, causing a default. How can so many hedge fund managers personally make billions for themselves and hundreds of millions for their partners if they were not insuring a whole lot of something with a whole lot of nothing and selling a whole lot of nothing for a whole lot of something?

there is no money. the money they are fighting over is gone and doestn exist!

The idea of the banks recovering the loss thru selling the property is, at this time, ludicrous

Idea: Banks should be required to ' Suspend' payments and interest accumulation if a person loses their job during an 'economic downturn' until that person finds a comparable paying job or until the national unemployment rate is less than 5%.

Vinny, the banking sector is financed by debt. Economic expansion is financed by debt. People have to borrow to start their businesses. Countries have to borrow for specific projects of expansion. If this were not the case, the world GDP would be stuck at the value of Net Worth of assets around the world. As that is all you would have to work with. The current banking system has allowed the world to increase its economic GDP without having to rely on real asset worth. This has allowed countries like America to have 14 trillion dollars worth of GDP without having the necessary REAL assets, i.e. land, property, mineral wealth, oil, etc, to back that up. That's the upside, however, the downside is that the system eventually fails. That's an inescapable dilemma. A time comes when debts have to be paid and there simply isn't enough to pay them back. Hence, the eventual run on the banks, hyperinflation due to printing more and more money and the loss of jobs through recession and finally a depression. This is generally the reducing of the "perceived" value of the World's GDP to its "actual" value, i.e. World Net Asset Value. It's the normal span of the current system. I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

The lending of loans to people who couldn't pay them back by the federal government might not have been the ONLY reason but it sure as hell brought on the recession A LOT quicker and with more drastic consequences. The federal government broke the biggest rule of "free market" economics, they interfered. If anyone truly still thinks America is a "capitalist economy" is delusional.

Those, "derivatives" you speak of are there specifically to counteract this known problem, to keep the system going for as long as humanly possible. It's "protection" against the unknown variable in Economics, HUMAN BEINGS, our volatility. Economics is all about "protecting" yourself to the best of your ability against that unknown variable. There are of course other variables, such as weather and other natural disasters but that's another point for another time. This coupled with the unfettered ability of banks around the world to lend without proper "risk assessments" is why we are at this point sooner than anticipated. It would have happened in the normal sphere of life, just not this quickly.

Funnily enough, I do agree with the premise of this protest but not to the level you guys are targeting it. It's not ONLY the people in Wall Street. It's your own government and other governments around the world. They committed "treason" by literally taking jobs away from America and Europe and taking them to China and India due to cheaper labour alternatives. If you were to target that, I might actually agree with you.

No, that's not what I said at all. I simply said I won't be wasting time telling a morally and financially bankrupt government to "change its ways". The system was built to fail eventually. The only way to keep the current status quo is to keep printing money, which your federal government is doing, in order to keep welfare, medicare, and all your other social schemes afloat. Your protest is telling the people, who have a vested interest in keeping the system afloat, to part with their money. Does that make any sense to you? Of course they not going to part with it, nor are they going to listen to you. It's a waste of time. You are actually better off "waiting for it to fail" instead of protesting. However, that's neither here nor there, I would rather these people spent their energies on helping each other out and creating the economy they so want to be a part of, instead of waiting for the "one percent" to part with their money.

Since I know protesting and writing naughty letters to "people" who don't give a damn about me, or you, is a complete and utter waste of time and effort, I don't see the need to be apart of your protest. That's all I'm saying. Good luck none the less.

I have rather spent my time gaining knowledge, learning news skills and running my own business instead of relying on others or the government to get a job and make a living.

I agree. I would rather spend my time working, paying off my debt, and storing some extra supplies. I think it will get a lot worse, and this group will not be prepared. At least I can stock up some supplies and be ready to take care and support my own family. I was taught to worry about yourself, your family and friends. These are the only ones you can count own.

I work for everything and have not taken any government money, even when unemployed. I was laid off in November of 2008, and with a lot of hard work, had 2 job offers two weeks later. Out of work 4 weeks total. The problem is that most of these people want to rely on the government and their social programs. No thanks, I'll pass.

wow. more power to you. thankfully i don't need to work two jobs, and we can be a one income family. i'm willing to live on less than median income for my family if that means we can spend time with the kids. and we are all on board with that. i am very lucky that way.

Your response above shows clearly that your efforts to gain knowledge and learn "news" skills has utterly failed. You should probably pick up a sign and go protest - its in your best interest! OWS is not "asking" people to part with their money, its telling people that the 1% has cheated us, rigged the system, and need to be held accountable, AND...yes, we need to change our economic rules to make sure the rest of us have an equal stake in our Democracy going forward.

But I'm sure you can sit on the sidelines while the rest of us take care of things for you! There's always someone who answers "Undecided" on simple poll questions! Keep up the good work!

Hm, your response shows your inability to allow others to choose their own path and take ownership of their own lives. Your responses shows exactly why most down to Earth people don't want to be apart of your protest. Your lack of objectivity, you're right and everybody else is wrong. You think other people don't have it hard? You think other people don't understand what it feels like to be at the mercy of "big money makers"?

Furthermore, why have my "efforts" to gain knowledge and skills utterly failed? Huh? Simple.. because I don't agree with you. Your OWS, occupy this and that, whatever, whatever, is not open to all. You hate any and all people who don't agree with you. It's only open to those who agree with your one world view. You have no leadership, you stand for nothing but some lame ass attempt at world wide "diversity" mantras, you have no REAL backbone and think that sitting outside, sleeping with sluts in tents is going to save the day. Well, by God, I am not joining that!

You're probably being propped up by the very people you hate. You're being used as a tool, a useful idiot. Nothing more.

I agree, most of the letters I have written get automated responses. The way to send a message to Wall Street and the Banks that we have bailed out to the tune of TRILLIONS, is to take your money out and put it in a safe deposit box and start using cash until they start paying us for the privilege of having our money.

Someone please explain to me (and I'm being serious, not trolling) how writing mean or snarky or hateful letters to CEOs and heads of corporations that you have absolutely NO leverage over (other than no longer purchasing their products) is going to make these folks do....

What is it you want them to do again? Public apologies? Lynchings? Immediately walk out with their check books and start writing fat checks to OWS? Is the idea here to publicly shame them?

This is juvenile. You cannot force meaningful change on people that you do not have control over. No matter how mad you are at these institutions, you don't own a majority share in their companies, you are not on their board of directors, you probably don't even own any of their stock (at least I'd hope not, since they are your whipping boys).

Why are you so fixated on Wall Street when you should be in Washington? Not just have A protest there...that should be the MAIN spot, not NYC. Like it or not, these guys don't have to do anything you say.

I can't support this kind of immature stunt which cannot hope to accomplish anything but more media attention and soundbites you may not like from those in your movement. I originally thought this thing had promise, but it seems like it's turned into a witch hunt instead of something productive.

Don't be surprised when the rest of us (the 99% you say you speak for) feel the same way.

While I am against the protest for a slew of reason, most of these people probably do own some sort of stock in these companies. If they have a 401k, then they own stock. Which companies depends on the portfolio.

While they like to tout this thing being national, I don't see it really having any traction outside of some large Northern and Western cities. Even the department I work in, which has about 20 people, everyone one's "open opinion" is this is a complete waste of time, money, at effort.

You do have a point with DC and the elected officials. At least with enough dissatisfaction, we can vote out people we don't like.

Yes. We think the administration needs to be replaced. Most of use lean more toward the Tea Party type mentality. Then again, we are all in the same type of work, so that may be a reason we have similar mentality.

Most around here just kind of roll their eyes - because, at the end of the day, the only way to actually hurt a business (or CEO, or shareholder) is to reduce the profit earned. The only way for a consumer to do that (outside of demanding legislation from their elected officials) is to not purchase from that company (or companies) anymore.

Yelling at them, threatening violence at demonstrations and protests, and writing them mean letters doesn't really amount to a hill of beans. That's the part I don't get. If they're so evil, why would shaming them have any effect?

Still waiting for someone who supports the focus of Wall Street over D.C. to answer my question about what, specifically, they think this particular action will bring about. No one seems to want to address it, though.

Yep. As I pointed out the other day, you see all of these people with their IPads, IPhones, IPods, etc. Apple is the most profitable company in the world right now. They have people in China working in sweat shops to make this stuff. People in these factories have been committing suicide. Yet, you don't see anyone picketing Apple. I think they are just picking on the financial section because it is easy to blame them.

Well, they've (the financial sector) been a really popular whipping boy for the past couple of years. Funny how politicians enjoy beating that drum as well, since there's no way they want the other end of the issue (their involvement in legislatively allowing these companies to operate as they do, both corps and financials) focused on them.

Responsibility in Business AND Government. Does politics control money or does MONEY control politics? Everyone should vote for the best candidate ect., but does our responsibility end right there? If the message is fragmented or confused it is because we have become that as a society due to excessive consumerism. Who has more influence over in DC? A couple living in New York state, (i.e. high school teacher and an engineer with two children) or the heads of too-big-to-fail financial institutions? And now the couple is forced to move out of their home and face foreclosure because they both lost their jobs and their mortgage is underwater? They had plenty of savings, but Bob's insurance didn't cover a large part of an operation he needed. The skyrocketing costs of commuting to work, day-care, and the health-care costs became too much. And now their kid's future is in jeopardy because of moral hazard where profits are privatized and losses are socialized. You call yourselves "frustrated" and a "patriot". Your Disneyland "wish upon a star" conditioning has warped your thinking.

Well, oddly enough, squarerootofzero, I'm neither a Disneyland thinker nor have I been conditioned. However, even someone with my "warped thinking" can recognize that this movement has precisely zero leverage with Wall Street. None. Nada. They will continue to go on with practices that may not be moral to the rest of America but are not illegal until we change the rules.

The government can do that. I don't think I stated anywhere that businesses don't hold a large amount of influence over legislation that our elected Congressional leadership passes. Now, maybe it's unpatriotic of me to believe that it is possible to find leadership who will have the moral fortitude NOT to take massive PAC Contributions, post-Congressional job offers, offer up back-room dealings, etc.

But perhaps that is where you and I differ. Because I also believe in personal responsibility. We are responsible for who is currently in Congress. We elected them. Nobody paid me for my vote, did you get paid for yours? We also (as a country), feed into excessive consumerism as you mentioned. But that doesn't exempt us from making bad choices. Do you honestly feel that EVERYONE who ended up upside down in a mortgage did so because of those big evil banks? Can you concede that there might be a handful of people whose eyes were bigger than their budgets? (Just using your specific example here).

You know, I had really hoped that this movement might avoid the massive over-generalization that we hear from the media and D.C. But frankly, it's becoming exactly the same thing. So, sorry if I don't agree that Wall Street should shoulder all the blame - since it's not all finance, but I can't find a general consensus to agree that it's JUST the "Big Banks" either.

YOU can sit at your job, go home and watch T.V., and then vote in November. Bob took a job stocking shelves 50 miles away and Sarah volunteers at a day-care because they can't afford to pay her. Their insurance has gone up 415% percent since 2006 and the cost of gas is 15% of his pay. Then in their free time they use their Constitutional right to assemble peacefully and exercise their freedom of speech. That sounds like personal responsibility to me. The rules are changing and it is because of people like Bob and Sarah. But, you go ahead and tell them to sit at the back of the bus because they made "bad" choices.

I didn't say anything about anyone sitting at the back of the bus, thanks.

But if you want to keep painting me as some elitist who think consumers are the only ones to blame, go right ahead. You don't know me from Adam, and it's been made pretty clear that if you aren't in complete agreement with every decision OWS makes, you are a troll, or a 1% supporter, or one of the 1% yourself.

So, squarerootofzero, I'd like to personally thank you for cementing the fact that this movement is all about Wall Street, and you really don't care about the fact that it's pretty futile to focus on them. Go on about your business.

The American people won't support a movement whose members are so closed-minded to other views that they can't be heard at all, squarerootofzero, and it's because of people like you. But, you go ahead and tell us that we're brainwashed and sheeple because our opinions differ.

Nope, not all about Wall Street. It doesn't go where I want it to go and it doesn't go where you want it to go. Maybe you are frustrated because you want more control than you really have. I gave up that idea long ago. I've accepted that things are out of my control. I guess the choice is to support or not. I will support and continue to support Bob, Sarah, and what is left of the American Dream as long as I breathe. If you will not it is your choice. But, be sure to know thy enemy that is all I will say. Good luck!

"No matter where you go or what you do, you live your entire life within the confines of your head." ~Terry Josephson

They don't answer because they want them to PAY for some utopian idea of "fairness". They advocate for a variety of ways of doing it, from wealth taxes on individuals to higher corporate taxes, much higher progressive income taxes, but the end result is that they want them to finance the continuation of the welfare state. I am always amazed at the level of vitriol against corporations, never acknowledging the vast amount of good that corporations do such as event sponsoring, building little league baseball fields, supporting the arts and cultural events, etc. And at the same time, they want to work for these corporations. Doesn't make sense to me. What is worse, there seems to be a lot of energy, creativity, passion, and some talent in the OWS crowd. And they have (or had) a half million dollars in seed money. I've suggested on a number of occasions that they be their own corporation, pick a product or service, hire their own people, get to selling it, and they can have all the living wage jobs and benefits that they can support. I never get an answer to that one.
I'm in Texas as well and can attest to your statement that there are a lot of us out here who feel the same way. Truer words never spoken.

Dear Frustrated39, We the 99% are NOT marching in lock-step. We all have our common beliefs and frustrations, as well as are individual differences. We are all 99% because we know something is very wrong and we are all frustrated. We are in New Territory and we are trying our way through the mess caused by the 1%. This will not be a Perfect or a Pretty Process. Patience and Years will be needed. Fair-ness.

And, aaron, believe me, I have realized that this movement is not for me. My initial hopes were high, until I saw that the main point of this was not political accountability and change through channels that would actually work, but instead has become some sort of a shame-movement to make those big bad bankers feel bad.

I'll continue voicing my dissatisfaction to the leaders I get to vote on, and we'll see where that goes.

Frankly, I just wanted to let you know what the sentiment is in areas that aren't right there in NYC, because I am not alone. But if you don't want or need support from the rest of us in the U.S., that's cool.

I feel that writing your representatives (which I have in the past, am currently, and will continue to do in the future) has far more power to influence change. Does that mean I'm going to do the things encouraged in the original plea for letters? Nope. When I contact my representatives, both state and federal, I at least afford them with respect while still airing my grievances.

A public demonstration on how you feel about the financial industry is fine, but still doesn't answer my question. What is it you want them to do? What is the result you expect from this demonstration? Is it for media attention or is to cause some sort of a change of heart? What do you want them to do?

I don't think this movement is about "change" so much. I don't get any of it. I've asked a million and one questions... but this is a national movement of individual protesters and a zillion special interests.

Trying to shape it, uniformly, into an action that would actually produce change (ie: a billion voices screaming at our reps at once) is met with hostility. Trust me, I've tried.

I feel your disappointment. I was very hopeful in the beginning, but this movement doesn't represent me. I'm not even upset with the entire 1%... people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs... etc, they're not the problem. And attacking the blanketed 1%, appears to trash the American Dream. Nothing cool about that.

Plus, look at what that guy just said to you, he disassociates himself from the NYC sector... how is any of this unified?

Perhaps you and I should start a movement, one aimed at the people who are really responsible. Bet we get more people on board than any Occupy group can.

Creativity at its finest!!!! Not only are these perfectly legal protest actions in which anyone can join, they're awe-inspiring by how imaginative they are! Visual, theatrical images that the media can run with and will feed news stories all over the globe. Street theater is legally protected, too. Bicycling pirates! Brilliant.

Ok so if the next time the new iPhone comes out and there are not thousands of college kids lined up to buy them, then maybe ill start worrying about the economy. GO HOME....... go occupy your families lives.

You haters flew planes into our buildings on Sept 11 and us fat cats are still making money.

What makes you think it will be any different now? Because this time your planes are made of paper instead of steel?

If you really want to Occupy Wall Street, you need to beat us at our own game.

Step 1: Go back to school
Step 2: Put in a decade or so studying applied math, theoretical physics, or a rigorous discipline of engineering or hard sciences.
Step 3: Systematically arb the 9 remaining bulge bracket banks.
Step 4 (OPTIONAL): Give all that money it took you 20+ years of dedicated work to make back to the bottom 99%.

Remember, bulge bracket banks have been around for nearly a century, but the people who run them constantly change. You absolutely can succeed at taking us over! But a hostile takeover will involve more than a few thousand strongly worded letters and xmas carols.

No, if you really want to lead you need to prove you will be more responsible stewards of people's money. Easy right? The people in charge now totally blew it back in 2008. You just need to be smarter than the investment bankers, brokers, traders. It's not hard-- clearly these aren't brilliant people. But you're not going to learn how to win the game hanging out in the park all day long. Instead of marching west from Bryant Park, why not head east to the NY public library and read one of these fine books?

Forget letters, go into your bank and take your money out and put it in a safe deposit box. If 10's of thousand of depositors do this Wall Street will start to listen. Those who have the money have the power, take back 99% and leave them with their 1% and see who has the real power.

Finally, a reasonable idea from a OWS supporter. Kudos to you. They listen only to that crispy sound of dollars rubbing together. Deny them yours. Let them play in their sandbox and screw each other. Stay out of their sandbox.